I had just been thinking about doing a post on a new book/DVD I got and then someone else was talking about not being able to get their newly adopted kiddo to sit and watch tv. So I thought I'd share some of my favorite resources, ones that my kids have loved, or ones that I love. And yes, I probably could live with out them, but they certainly make my life easier or bring joy into the lives of my kids.
The Wiggles videos/DVDs: For newly adopted kids, I think movies or tv shows that have plots are overwhelming. It's all about words and they don't know the language well enough to process what's happening so those shows bore them. Kenson would not watch tv for anything when he first came home. And there were times when I needed a break, where I needed him to sit quietly by himself. Plus a little tv time has served as a transition time to our nap time. The Wiggles came to our rescue. All songs, almost all about relevent vocabulary, not at lot of overstimulating graphics, plus they are generally catchy and not annoying to an adult.
Please, Puppy, Please by Spike Lee: This book has been loved by both of our kids. Simple rhythmic language as two black or biracial kids play with their puppy all day. He also has written Please, Baby, Please which is similar. Another book that is illustrated by the same illustrator (Kadir Nelson) is He's Got the Whole World in His Hands. Kenson loved that one too.
MagnaDoodle: Whoever invented this toy is a genius. An attached pen that is had to lose, something too big to easily be dropped, no little parts (other than stampers if yours comes with those). It's great for plane trips, car trips, church, and just playing at home. Lots of ages can use it and it is flexible enough for every kid to really get something out of it.
Big ole' bag of animal crackers, available at our local Walmart for $1.94: my friend, Natalie, once told me that she makes her snack time easier and cheaper by only offering one snack item at almost every snack. I decided to try this and have our afternoon snack time be animal crackers. I thought my kids would get bored. But not really. Every once in a while we have a piece of cheese or some fruit or chocolate chips, etc.. But mostly it's animal crackers. No fussing over choices, easy to shop for, and the big bag lasts a long time.
Read -n- See DVD Bible: Just got this gem in an attempt to get my kids to be occuppied while I do my quiet time in the morning. It has 40 Bible stories, each one with a story in the book and retold on the DVD with words, picture, and songs. The best part is that it is not just continuous play. The book is divided by stories and the DVD lets you stop after each story which was just what I was looking for. I didn't want a 30-40 minute video, just something about 10-15 minutes in length so I could do my quiet time while they watched the video. Each video section has a memory verse, retells the story with pictures, and then sings a song. We usually watch two stories each day. Not the best video quality as it's just the pictures from the book but for my kids, it works.
3 comments:
Ditto on the Magna Doodle! It is the best invention since the printing press.
When V. first came home, she loved Finding Nemo - I think because it had enough visual stimulation to keep her interested without her understanding the language. She would watch the first 15 minutes over and over again.
Another favorite of our is Little Bill on Nick Jr. about a preschool-aged AA boy and his family.
She also liked the Baby Einstein DVDs - I put them on in French mode and she was mesmerized.
I'm with you - we don't keep the television on all the time, but sometimes Mommy needs a break to cook/shower/go to the bathroom, and I don't see anything wrong with a little tube time here and there.
So funny that we posted about the Wiggles at the same time! :-) Bless you friend!
SV
We still haven't seen the Wiggles yet - probably because we don't get videos/DVDs very often. I'm sure the library probably has them when I get up the nerve to take my wild and crazy toddlers to a quiet place. :) I think we also had the Read-N-See DVD Bible for our older daughter, so I'll have to dig that one out. I did find this week that one of my kids will sit and watch Sid the Science Kid on PBS - mesmerized! Must be the catchy music at the beginning and the kid's voices. It's also very colorful, so that probably helps too - and the speaking isn't too fast. Josephine, however, watches the songs at the beginning then loses interest in the plot.
My kids love Magna Doodles and the Please Baby Please book (Cate sent it to us:). I didn't know there were other similar books - will have to look for them! They like the repetition of the "Please Baby" phrases, and they also repeat after the other sentence on each page. That and the illustrations are I think what they love about it!
Snacks I've been mixing up - but usually we stick with plain cheerios and goldfish crackers. Sometimes fruit snacks, vanilla wafers, or fig newtons. They don't fight over who-got-what or who-got-more yet, so I've been mixing it up and also giving one cheerios and one goldfish because they have different tastes and if they don't have what they enjoy eating, the playing with their snacks, making a mess, before I put them up, which results in pouting/crying. :) We'll see how long that lasts though - I'm only off work for another 5 weeks.
I might also have to check out 'Wordy Girl's recommendation for Little Bill. :)
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